The best and the rightest: Elle magazine highlights conservative women

posted at 7:32 pm on August 16, 2011 by Tina Korbe

As someone who enjoys a fine fashion spread, I was pleased, like my friend Katie Pavlich, to see Elle magazine highlight “the next generation of conservative women” in an article today. “The Best and the Rightest” briefly profiles notable female conservative activists and pundits, from S.E. Cupp and Dana Loesch to Smart Girl Politics’ Ashley Sewell and the Clare Booth Luce Institute’s Alyssa Cordova.

The article’s treatment of Cupp and Loesch, in particular, betrays its author’s admiration of these women, both of whom boast impressive accomplishments, and the piece strikes a curious, even slightly puzzled tone — as though the author, in true journalistic fashion, sets out not so much to advance an agenda but to answer a question, “What makes these women tick? And what is it about them even I — an Elle writer – find so appealing?” Cupp seemed content with the coverage, tweeting her thanks to Elle for its inclusion of her in the spread.

But subtle digs scattered throughout the article make it clear the writer doesn’t want readers to think she shares a conservative worldview — or even to think she’s neutral. She’s careful to remind readers that some perceive young conservative women as the “ungrateful” daughters of the feminist movement. She writes conservative women might use birth control to delay motherhood themselves, but object to federal funding for Planned Parenthood, “which allows poor women to do the same.” At the end of the article, she mentions mother-of-19 Michelle Duggar in connection with conservative push-back to Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues — and she can’t seem to resist a crude reference to the stories the star of Ensler’s play could tell about Duggar.

But the article contains none of the vitriol that conservative politicians like Sarah Palin and Michele Bachmann have had to face — and, for that reason, seems notable. We’ve come a long way when the adjective “fair” means merely “an absence of unnecessarily cheap shots.” (To be, um, fair, though, snark seems to have become an indispensable part of commentary these days — it’s just frustrating that mainstream fashion mags, like the rest of the MSM, purport a degree of sanctimonious seriousness that transcends low blows and refuse to admit a bias. Better to just acknowledge the angle!)

More importantly, though, the article seems not to have fully educated its author. Toward the end of the piece, S.E. Cupp makes the keen point that conservative women completely uphold the main message of feminism. “The point of feminism was to give women a choice,” Cupp says. “If women choose to work, fine; if they choose to stay home, fine. Seventies feminism judged, took away one of those choices.” The Elle piece, while a start, doesn’t fully reflect the range of women who comprise the conservative movement: Instead, it seems determined to cast all conservative women in the same mold, calling them “baby Palins” (are all liberal women “baby Hillarys”?) and emphasizing their gun-toting, red-meat-eating, sports-watching credentials. But, just as conservative women respect the right of women to choose to work or to stay home, they don’t dictate tastes or hobbies, either. In other words, conservative women, like conservative men, stand for freedom, for the right of individuals to pursue happiness as they see fit. Yes, it’s cool that conservative gals are comfortable with their index finger on a trigger, that they finish their meal when a date orders them an expensive steak and that they’re open to the all-American pastimes of football, baseball and NASCAR. But none of that is essential to conservatism — standing for the right to enjoy all of that (along with more traditionally “feminine” pursuits) is.

Which brings me to my last point: Conservatives, in some ways, have unnecessarily ceded other elements of American culture to the left. In the U.S. today, the world of arts (music, movies, literature, dance, fashion) rarely reflects a conservative worldview for the simple reason that conservatives rarely go into these fields or weed themselves out when they encounter a liberal bias in the arts establishment. That could be because conservative parents are apt to encourage their children to enter careers in which they will assuredly be able to provide for themselves. But Breitbart talks about this and I agree with him: We don’t need “conservative” movies, “conservative” music, “conservative” books, (or a “conservative” fashion magazine that features an article paying respects to “liberal” women) etc., etc. We need conservative filmmakers, conservative musicians, conservative authors. Artists who, like any artist, create for art’s sake, but who bring a different set of raw materials and nascent creative ideas than their liberal equivalents. Who knows? If that happened, we might someday encounter a fashion magazine article that made no mention of Cupp’s conservative credibility, but, instead, highlighted her trademark sharp square-frames and beautifully blended peach blush.

Blowback

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If that happened, we might someday encounter a fashion magazine article that made no mention of Cupp’s conservative credibility, but, instead, highlighted her trademark sharp square-frames and beautifully blended peach blush.

You forgot to mention her legs, showcased from time to time on RedEye, which in and of themselves are a work of art. Yeah, baby!!

Im sure the guys at DailyKos are just wreck with anticipation at the new Democratic Female calender featuring Nancy Pelosi, Debbie Wasserman Shultz and Barney Frank.
William Amos on August 16, 2011 at 7:48 PM

ROFL

The centerfold will be Jeneane Godawfulho sitting in a giant ashtray while holding a copy of Mein Kampf.

I was expecting some photos slightly larger than postage stamps. And even in miniature, could they have used a more unflattering picture of the lovely S.E. Cupp? Or perhaps this is an on-line version of the story and one needs to buy the issue to see the rest?

Never before have I projectile vomited across the entire room, and I say that as a dude who once spent entire nights in Subic City bars drinking MoJo.

Bishop on August 16, 2011 at 8:04 PM

Bish, please tell me JetBoy wasn’t describing in that post what he was wearing and that maybe he was referring to one of the gals in the Elle article, or something. Given your reaction, I’m assuming the worst.

Conservatives, in some ways, have unnecessarily ceded other elements of American culture to the left. In the U.S. today, the world of arts (music, movies, literature, dance, fashion) rarely reflects a conservative worldview for the simple reason that conservatives rarely go into these fields or weed themselves out when they encounter a liberal bias in the arts establishment.

Sorry Tina, but isn’t that a little like criticizing a Jew because he or she doesn’t want to immigrate to Iran? After all, Jews are pretty rare these days inside Iran, aren’t they?

We haven’t so much “ceded” these areas as we have been “driven out”. The hostility is real. The persecution vicious. There is little wonder that most conservatives would rather choose a vocation where they feel relatively “safe”, rather than invite misery and mistreatment upon themselves by willfully hurling themselves, kamikaze style, into the cesspool of a liberal stronghold (such as Hollywood).

My collie says:

Oh yes, and just one more thing, Tina. Before you offer up that old Nietzschean cliche that says “that which does not kill me only serves to make me stronger”, let me also remind you of that other little Nietzschean gem, namely “be careful about staring into the abyss, because the abyss stares back.”

If you’re wondering what collie meant by that, it’s a warning that it is far too easy to find that you have BECOME the very thing that you loathe and struggle against. We see it happen to the people that we send to Congress all the time.

I find it interesting that the Democrats call themselves the party of both women and Blacks. And yet while they always win around 90% of the Black vote, the Democrats face a constant struggle to win a slim majority of the woman’s vote (without which they are doomed to lose most elections).

So regardless of whether they get 53% of the woman’s vote (and usually win) or 48% of the woman’s vote (and usually lose), they still insist that approximately half the female population is voting against their own interests.

The real reason that they hate Palin and Bachmann so much, is that they are terrified of young teenage girls viewing these strong, attractive, charismatic women as role models.

Author is Nina Burleigh. Thought I recognized the name. From Wikipedia:

In a 1998 essay for the magazine Mirabella, Burleigh described her “thrill” in noticing that, while aboard Air Force One during her time as a White House correspondent for Time, President Bill Clinton found her attractive. Howard Kurtz of The Washington Post reported that she had said; “I’d be happy to give him [oral sex] just to thank him for keeping abortion legal”[10]

Sorry, Tina, but Elle magazine is something akin to a female version of Maxim. There is exactly Zero thinking going on there. When you use the word “feminism” in a written piece, every reader gets a little stupider.

Well, Cupp is the only one mentioned with whose work I am familiar, but I’ve found it a very accurate general rule that conservative women writers/thinkers/activists/politicians tend to be both smarter and better looking than their counterparts on the left, but it goes beyond such objective considerations, I think.

Irrespective of their specific physical appearances, most conservative women are attractive people – meaning they are genuinely open to communicating with others, and with a default favorable assumption about others. They are just nicer people to be around, so their looks are improved by their attitude.

Conversely, leftist women tend to be dour and angry, perhaps damaged people, perhaps the Penile Patriarchy has oppressed them to the point where all they can do is hate men, hate life, and bitch about both. Far be it from me to say they don’t have every right to do just that – I only say it doesn’t necessarily enhance their attraction or approachability.

It’s just hard to talk to someone while making sure they aren’t within reach of anything sharp.

First, I need to wipe the drool off the screen, after reading all these comments!!!! How many were on the ACTUAL article vs. the ladies?? LOLOL

Prosaic person that I am at 7 am………..here’s one!!

We need conservative filmmakers, conservative musicians, conservative authors. Artists who, like any artist, create for art’s sake, but who bring a different set of raw materials and nascent creative ideas than their liberal equivalents.

Maybe David Mamet will open the gate for conservatism in Hollywood, now that his book is out.